News from GGCS

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GGCS calls for the renewables commitments to be met after supplier collapses

Posted: 2 February, 2022. Written by Jesse Scharf

GGCS pushes for renewables commitments to be considered in Supplier of Last Resort process.

With over 1,000,000 households being impacted by the collapse of their energy supplier, GGCS has written to Ofgem to propose that renewable gas commitments are considered within the Supplier of Last Resort (SLOR) process.

Consumers join renewable tariffs on the promise that a percentage of their gas will be matched to Renewable Gas Guarantees of Origin (RGGOs) and/or a percentage of their electricity consumption will be matched to Renewable Electricity Guarantees of Origin (REGOs). 

In the majority of cases those commitments are met but when a supplier collapses they may do so at a point where they have failed to retire the appropriate amount of REGOs or RGGOs.

The process for finding a new supplier for consumers in this situation is called the Supplier of Last Resort (SOLR) and it rightly focuses on moving customers to a new supplier with the minimum disruption.

However the current criteria for selecting these suppliers – who main gain 100,000’s of consumer in one go – does not give any weight to those suppliers who offer who offer to maintain renewable commitments or fulfill unmet commitments by the failed supplier.

This has impacted the customers on three green gas tariffs, offered by People’s Energy Solarplicty and Tonik Energy, who have collapsed in recent years.

GGCS believes that Ofgem’s remit to “protect the interest of consumers” should include their interest in being supplied with renewable energy as expressed by them joining a renewable tariff. While the SoLR process may not be guaranteed to attract a supplier willing to offer equivalent or similar commitments renewable supply commitments, we believe that process should at least give weight to any offer to do so and increase the chances that that supplier would be selected.

A copy of the letter to Ofgem is available as a PDF below. 

For more information on this topic please contact the GGCS Scheme Manager – Jesse Scharf – jscharf@greengas.org.uk

Further Information:

• Recognition of renewables commitments when appointing a Supplier of Last Resort SoLR (0.19 MB)